Round eight of the All Ireland League brought Cashel to Dub Lane, Belfast on Saturday last to play Queens University. Queens were and remain to date the only team to beat league leaders Highfield. Their pitch which doubles as a GAA pitch has one of the best surfaces in the country. However the persistent rain and a gale blowing across the field made ball handling very difficult. In spite of this we witnessed a most competitive game of rugby which entertained the small crowd of mostly Cashel people who attended. Cashel's strength was their pack while Queens had a very strong backline. They started extremely well by running the ball from all angles. Cashel stood up to the early attacks with some excellent tackling and kept the line intact for the first seven minutes. Queens won a lineout on half way and got the ball to their centre. Their scrum half ran a beautiful line through a small gap and raced over for the first try of the game. They could not have kept up this early pace and gradually Cashel worked their way upfield. Cashel were awarded a penalty five metres out and opted for a scrum. Three further penalties followed and Cashel opted for the scrum each time but unfortunately the ball was knocked on as they drove for the line. They got their reward on the Queens scrum as they drove them off their own ball and James Ryan was on hand to touch down for a try to level the game. Three minutes later Cashel knocked on inside their own twenty two, they were penalised in the scrum and Queens went three points ahead from the penalty. Back came Cashel who drove into the Queens danger zone forcing a series of penalties. Again they opted for scrums and on thirty minutes they drove over the Queens try line where James Ryan touched down for his second try. Jason Newton converted. On thirty five minutes a very significant development. Keith Melbourne raced back inside his own twenty two to retrieve the ball from a Queens kick through. As he went to ground a Queens played slid in and caught him in the back. Following consultation with his linesman the referee issued a red card. It seemed harsh considering the conditions. Three minutes later Queens were awarded a penalty in front of the posts but it was reversed and Cashel cleared their lines. Half time score Queens 8 Cashel 12.
Cashel dominated the third quarter and were camped in the Queens half for most of this time. The squally showers made handling and throwing into the lineout very difficult. On fifty eight minutes Cashel were over for what looked like a certain try but the ball was knocked on. They continued to pressurise the Queens scrum and were awarded a penalty try on sixty minutes. At 19 points to 8 ahead Cashel went looking for the bonus point try. They tried very hard but Queens had other ideas and defended extremely well. They had the last word with a converted try in injury time when they ran a free kick from the Cashel ten metre line to earn a losing bonus point. Final score Queens 13 Cashel 19. This was a very solid win for Cashel as it is never easy to win away from home. The pack must take most of the credit for the win. The front row of Cathal Ryan, Niall Fitzgerald and James Kendrick are a formidable outfit. Keith Melbourne and Brendan Crosse were very solid in the second row. Once again James Ryan, Ed Leamy and Michael Casey were outstanding and Tommy Anglim added real punch to proceedings when he came on. Centres Aidan McDonald and Conor Cashman worked hard in defence all day.
Highfield remain on top of the league two points ahead of Cashel in second. Next weeks visitors to Spafield, Navan are in third place, two points behind Cashel. There is a ten point gap back to UL/Bohemians in fourth position. Next weeks clash with Navan promises to be a cracker. The top three teams have won seven games each and next weeks series of games will decide the pecking order at the end of the first full round of games. A large crowd is expected at Spafield. Cashel team (1-20) C Ryan, N Fitzgerald, J Kendrick, B Crosse, K Melbourne, J Ryan, E Leamy, M Casey, A Barron, D Lyons, F Kelleher, J Newton, A McDonald, R Kingston, J Rae. C O'Donnell, I Mijak, I Rqibi, T Anglim, C Cashman.